ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: row · tear · wound · roll · bat · stem · mine · bass

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bat — the animal
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mine — for digging
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. roll — a cake
  10. row — a line
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. stem — to come from
  18. wound — an injury
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. tear — to rip
  21. roll — a list
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bass — low music
  24. tear — from crying

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com